A Week of WICKED: Inside the 10th Anniversary Party!

Hello, I'm Richard Ridge for Broadway World

The musical Wicked, which has become a worldwide phenomenon, is celebrating its 10th year anniversary here on Broadway at the Gershwin Theatre

And I'm at the after party where I caught up with the cast, creators and past alumni

Tell me what tonight meant to you. Well, I basically felt the inside of my head explode into little green fragments

They didn't cut anybody, they just made everybody laugh and clap. when I see this show after 10 years

and I think this is all sort of was rolling in imaginary reels in the back of my head

and here's 1,700 people screaming like an ocean of sound at the songs, at the story, at the characters themselves

I don't really feel like I'm alive. I feel like I'm some other creature than a human being

This kind of thing doesn't get to happen to a person's imagination. It's a moment of deep gratitude

It really is. I mean, when I think about Stephen Schwartz coming into my life, changing my life completely

just like that song, just like the song. And when I think about all the people that we're so grateful to who make it all happen all over the world

I'm just humbled and I'm grateful. And I feel very, very blessed

What did tonight mean to you, Joel? Tell me. Well, I guess this is my second 10-year show, Chicago

What was that, 15 now? Is it? It's up there. I think it's 15 or 16. You're right

Yeah. And we had a big night on the 10th anniversary that I'll never forget

And this show is a great show. It deserves everything it's gotten

When you look at 10 years and worldwide, this is seen in different languages all around the world

Why do you think people connect to this the way they do? First of all, it was a classic and was accepted in that way all around the world originally

And then there was a movie that was a classic and that was all around the world

And then they took this and switched it around and gave it a push and made it into something new

But that was about friendship. And the kids, the young kids especially, just love that

What is the biggest thrill for you with being a part of Wicked and the Wicked family? I think seeing it go from the first table read and the first day of rehearsal all the way to now and see how far it came

I mean, in San Francisco, we knew right away it would be, once we got in front of an audience, we knew that it would be a hit

And we could tell. I mean, there was a line around the current theater in San Francisco. But I think seeing it evolve and seeing where it's come from then to now, I mean, the story's the same, the script's the same

But just seeing the energy and the performances and, you know, just seeing it be, just seeing how we evolve as companies grow throughout the world with Wicked

You know, I think that's been the coolest thing. What did tonight mean to you? Oh, it's fantastic

I'm doing a show that happens to be very short. And we started at 7, so we did our show

And I busted up here as fast as I could. And I got here in time for as long as you're mine

Beautiful. And it was just beautiful. I forgot. I've been in there since

I forgot how huge the Gershwin is. Because the vineyard where I'm doing the show

the Gershwin would eat it like a carrot stick. It's just so beautiful

It's amazing. Give me your history with Wicked. I did the tour

I played Stephanie J. Block in the tour in 2006. And then I did Broadway in 2007

Both times with Kendra Casabal as my Glinda and Sebastian Arcellus as my Fiero

And other wonderful people too. But those were like my studies. Do you remember your first performance on stage as Elphaba

What do you remember? Oh, what I remember is most of all, I remember being so nervous that Wizard and I

I felt like Dr. Dillamond because my voice, I couldn't control it

and my vibrato was happening so fast and I just felt nervous

But then after that number was done, I was fine. I've been in this business for an extremely long time

and very rarely do you come across an opportunity to be in a show like Wicked that literally

just changes the theatrical experience changes Broadway breaks all kinds of records and I mean to be a part of that and to be a part of this family has been one of the most amazing things It was I spent four years with the show and it was probably some of the best years of my life

And, you know, I mean, my son was born while I was doing this show. I mean, this show means a lot to me

I think it was about nine years ago. I was the first replacement for Glinda

I was thrilled to be the first replacement because I think I had said to, jokingly somewhat to the producers

I was like, I want to be the first replacement. Well, I never really imagined it happening, but it happened

And it was one glorious year, but it touched my life in so many ways that still to this day I get recognized for it

I get compliments and comments from, I still get fan mail of all things

Like if I'm doing another show, I'll get fan mail regarding Wicked. So it's pretty intense

You know, it's a full circle moment. I brought my parents who were at opening night 10 years ago

before I was married to Norbert, before we had a child, before I lived in New Jersey, before I had stepchildren

So it's, you know, to come back and see all of these people

who helped create the life that I have now. I mean, I know that sounds a little heavy and dramatic, but it's true

I mean, these people, I met my husband and have this life now

So it's been a really meaningful experience and totally fun. I got to tell you, this is fantastic

Ten years, you know, I was the wizard for five years. And I'm like, five years

I think, I mean, that's like, I feel like part of this show

I feel like part of this family. and it's nice to see all the family here

And what a night this was. It's fantastic. So many people got married during the show

People had children during the show. I know. And do you know, I think all of them had

didn't they all have girls or did they all have boys? I mean, there must be something in that green bottle

You know, what's in that green bottle that the witch has that we give these girls

But yeah, it's cool to see everybody married. You see, everybody's life goes on

because you're so closely associated for 10 years that you can actually become part of their lives

Tell me what you love about this role, what she means to you. Oh, I just love Elphaba's fire

She has such fire, and she doesn't ever hold back. She's always speaking her mind, and I admire it

It doesn't matter whether people are going to like it or not. She's going to tell you the truth of the situation

and sometimes people don't always understand that or want to hear that

but that's what you're going to get from Elphaba. I have such a special history with Wicked

It was my first show, my first real big show out of college

And I was working at Bloomingdale's when I got the phone call that I got it. And I got, I was the Glinda understudy on the first national tour

And I picked up the phone, found out, and I looked at all of the other makeup counters and fragrance counters around me

And they all knew I was waiting for the phone call. and the whole entire area of Bloomingdale's erupted in applause

And I showed up to St. Louis and I literally, I literally had like $7 in my bank account

I didn't even have enough money to buy food and my mom had to order me a pizza from Denver

to in St. Louis at the like Domino's and I ate it over a couple of days. I just didn't know anybody yet so I didn't want to tell anybody

I was embarrassed. So anyways, Wicked totally changed my life. First time you got green

I do. It was amazing. I mean, it's everything that you could imagine

You're green, you're flying, you're singing these incredible notes, and you're running upstairs, and you're wearing dresses that weigh 20 pounds

It's thrilling. It's what you hope for when you become a theater actress, that you do a role like this

I literally documented my first night, and then I look at it now, and I'm like

my God, I was obviously very nervous. Maybe other people can't tell, but I was like, for me, I watched myself

you were nervous that night. it's sort of because the show has such a history

and it's such a good show and as actors we all want to live up to how great the show is

and it's tours everywhere in different countries so there's a history there and there's a legacy for Wicked

and I was glad to be a part of it It's so exciting, it's so extraordinary to think that it's been 10 years

it doesn't feel like 10 years to me at all but that's because as we get older time goes faster

but wow it's just it's been such a thrill for me to be part of this incredible

experience of Wicked this amazing phenomenon you know but I wasn't around

for the beginning so I didn have all of that festivity so I get to have some of this festivity now and that pretty fun Do you remember your first performance on stage What do you remember about that night

Being just scared out of my mind and just thrilled. The adrenaline that was pumping through me, I can't even..

I feel like that could be bottled and shot into people, and it would make them fly

Yeah, it was just incredible. And the first applause... Elphaba's entrance is just so powerful and so you actually, I found I actually got to live in my own moment of being front center, down center stage as a dream, in one of my dream roles

So, yeah, it was great. Why do you think this musical has touched so many people

Well, there isn't another musical that I can think of that's like it now or has been or may ever be

I don't know. But it's just such a purely great story about women and girls and their autonomy and finding out who they are and what loyalty means in friendship

And it's a really good message, strong message for girls. And I really think that as long as there are girls between the age of 7 and 17, there will always be a wicked

It's just such a magical show. I think that it never fails to get that kind of audience reaction

And I was so moved and shocked by that when I first joined the company

And then tonight, oh my gosh, the audience was out of control. I was out of control. I was crying

And it was just really moving to be on this side of it

and to watch how it comes across and how people relate to it

It was really emotional. Oh my gosh, it was just so exciting to be part of this show that in a moment when the audience screams and yells

you feel the impact it's had on hundreds of thousands of people who have just loved it

And you feel so humbled to just get to do it every night. I've been doing this show for eight years, eight times a week

I love it, and it just makes me fall in love all over again. Just when you think you can't love it more, you love it more

And that was tonight. I played the role of Glinda on the tour, and that was a blast

I have many fun stories from, you know, on the road. You know, things get a little bumped around in a truck

and I've Sinead turned on instead of using my bubble, anything like that

And no particular, I mean, it's live theater, so there's always going to be funny things that go on

It felt like an opening night again. It was like a rebirth of the show

I was tearing up. I don't know if my mascara is still on, but it was awesome

Do you have a favorite story that happened to you during the run on the road or in New York? I do, actually

When I was on the road, we were in New Orleans, and there was a power outage in the city

The whole city lost power, and it was in the middle of our show. And so we didn't want to leave everyone without finishing the show

So we pushed the piano on stage. Somebody played acoustically. All the stagehands came on with flashlights

and we sang for good in the dark for a New Orleans audience, and it was unbelievable

And then I had to go home in the green. What does tonight mean to you? Well, this was outrageous

The feeling of love coming from the audience to us was just an overwhelming experience

I felt very honored when they asked me to come and be part of the 10th anniversary

I've been doing Wicked on the road, and I was on Broadway a couple of years ago, and I just went back on the road, and at the last day

they said, we'd like you to come back and be with Carole Kane and be the 10th anniversary wizard

And I just am honored. I think I was more overwhelmed than I thought I would be

The audience was giving such incredible energy, and none of us were really expecting that

So it really, within the first five minutes of the show, became something that was powerful for all of us, too

So it's pretty great. You know, just to be a part of the show is thrilling, but to be part of it at ten years and realize that it's sort of this amazing piece

You know, when the show opened, I was too young to be in the show

So it's kind of amazing to think that a show has run this long that I can actually age into a part and get to play it and be part of this company

I just find it amazing. Tell me what tonight means to you. Oh, it's huge

I've been such a fan of Wicked since it opened. I was in high school. It was the first show I saw on Broadway

So being here and being a part of this historical night with the show

it's been fantastic. Yeah, it's just wonderful. The audience was incredible tonight, right

I've never seen anything like it. Yeah, we held for like a minute at the end of the opening number

It was crazy. It's such an amazing feeling being in the Gershwin Theater with so many alumni there and being part of such an epic night with such an amazing cast

You know after the first act ended you settle your nerves but it just an exciting night You can really contain it It fun give me your history with wicked because you went in the same time lindsey went in right talk about that yeah um well you know lindsey and i did a show together last year and uh

yeah it was such a awesome thing that we got to go into the show together because this is my first

first broadway show first time you know being a replacement and coming into a show um such a beast

like wicked which i've seen many times and it's so intimidating it's so different um and having

someone by my side and being able to rehearse with her and have somebody that's going

through what I'm going through and to kind of feel that with was

really, I was so grateful for that and we just had such a good

time. It was such a relaxing rehearsal period and the fact that we were already

such good friends and felt so comfortable with each other was amazing. You got to do the

show tonight. How do you feel? I feel amazing. This audience is crazy. I knew it. We had that conversation

before, and I was just like, I bet you it's going to be a rock concert. And it kind of was

They applauded for everything. They just loved the show. They just loved the show

They loved specific lines. I didn't have to do much. I just had to say my lines and play the part, and they were just in it, you know

Could you hear the applause? You're up in your bubble. Was it, like, crazy before you even came down

Well, here's the deal. The monkeys come out in the very beginning, and they applauded for the monkeys

So I was like, all right, it's going to go well, you know? And then the curtain opens, and the ensemble is there

they applauded for them and I was like okay and then I'm just like hold it together Mozzie

hold it together because I knew they would be excited for Glinda to come in and then at the end

of the opening number like they just would not stop and at some point I'm just like we're going to have to pay

like musicians overtime if I don't like cut this off as much as I'd love to be like

stay in it you know so finally I was just like well and they like laughed

that I had to like cut them off but it's kind of like a fun moment you know. I'm sure that was all

during the show I'm sure during popular the same thing. Everything. I mean

And it was funny. Like, they definitely, they, this audience knows the show, you know

So they appreciated the little stuff and the big stuff. They stood up at the end of Defying Gravity, but they were clapping at, like, even, like, any little entrance or, like, certain lines

They were, like, looking forward to certain lines. You know, like, Winkland was, like, waving to Dorothy, being, like, just take that one road the whole time

They were just like, yes! You know, like, they just, like, love. any little or big thing, basically

What was it like tonight? I did not know to expect what it was

It was crazy. I've never in my life, I mean, it was overwhelming to say the very least

Ali was saying it was like this Broadway rock show from the second The Monkees came out

Yeah, from Downbeat, from the orchestra starting. It was crazy, and it was so hard to maintain balance

and be like, okay, don't react to the audience, stay in the story

But how can you not react when the crowd is deafening? I didn't have to sing any of my notes in the ends of the songs

because they started applauding before. So I was like, oh, I'm not going to sing. It was so great

Ali was like, keep it together, keep it together, keep it together. My heart was pounding a million miles

It was crazy. So this is the 10th year anniversary. I mean, I know you just joined the show

but this is touching people all around the world. nine companies. What do you think the success of Wicked is all about

I think it's about a really great show with a really great story that everyone connects with

You know, I think, number one, people love The Wizard of Oz, and these characters are a huge

part of that. And so to get to see another version of that story, you know, I think that's

anyone would die to kind of see how that goes. I would. I would love to know, like

what happened to Dorothy afterward, too. And, but then also, you know, then I think you get here

and you get settled in, you're like, oh, wow, this story is really deep and really important

And these women, they go through so much, and the journey is so extreme

And I just, I think anyone can relate to that. And I don't know, I just, I think it's just really freaking well done, too, on top of it

Thank you